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Why are so many people struggling with anxiety and depression these days – more than ever before? Among young adults in particular there seems to be an epidemic. Clearly, something’s changed in the last decade! A recent study by Dr. Martin Pall suggests that EMFs (electromagnetic fields) are causing neuropsychiatric effects, producing these symptoms and others. And the increase in incidence coincides with the rise of smartphones, smart meters, and home WIFI – all potent household sources of EMFs.

I stumbled on the Pall study as I waited – smartphone in hand – to meet a young friend in a café. I couldn’t wait to tell her about it; I know that anxiety stalks her, despite careful attention to her diet and nutrients. I’ve long puzzled over the missing piece in her health story. When I blurted out the study results, she quickly made the connection with her initial experience of anxiety around nine years ago, when she was in her mid teens, and its meteoric increase over recent years after she got her first smartphone with a data plan. Today, her ever-present smartphone supplies her music, media, communication link, study assistant, entertainment, alarm clock, and boredom buster. It’s what she turns to for support during anxiety assaults. (Seeing the battery level drop even triggers anxiety!) Like many, she sleeps with it beside her in bed, and she lives, studies, and works bombarded by WIFI.

Martin Pall’s study explains the mechanism by which EMFs produce histological and functional changes in our central and peripheral nervous systems. And here’s the link to our bones: EMFs act on the voltage sensors of the brain’s voltage gated calcium channels (VGCCs), which are in charge of releasing neurotransmitters and neuroendocrine hormones. Intracellular calcium increases, causing widespread disruption of chemical balance, leading to faulty signals.

We don’t want excessive intracellular calcium in our brains! We want our calcium to settle decisively in our bones. And of course we all want to enjoy good mental health. Because of our genetic uniqueness, EMFs affect some of us more acutely than others, which explains why we don’t all experience depression or anxiety at the same level of exposure. Yet, it’s quite likely that there are still brain effects at the cellular level for the rest of us, and quite possibly an impact on our bones.

So what’s to be done to restore some balance? It’s too late to put the WIFI genie back in the bottle. But here are some steps we can all take:

Test your nutrient status. The very nutrients that affect calcium utilization are key in managing EMF sensitivity. These are vitamin D, magnesium, boron, and vitamin K2. All are vital for bone health. If you need more than your diet can supply, take some as supplements.

Put some distance between yourself and your smartphone. It’s become a vital communication link, but it doesn’t have to be on your body at all times. Leave it a few feet away, rather than in your pocket, while you’re not actively using it. Find a charging spot away from your bedroom at night.

Look to old ways for new habits. Remember when we used to read books? Waken to alarm clocks? Watch movies on TV? Speak face-to-face?

Turn off your household WIFI at night. Even small steps can reduce your exposure.